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Friday, June 08, 2012

Good News Friday: Straight Mormons March In Utah's Gay Pride Parade

It seems everyone has an
opinion on Mormons these days, but not all Mormons areMittsyRomney and not all Mormons are Donny Osmond and not all Mormons liked
the idea that the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints [LDS] funded hate
in California a few years back.

No, not all Mormons are like
that. Some understand that equality is a civil right and everyone deserves it.

In fact, some Mormons--three
hundred, to be exact-- believethatso strongly that they actually took part in Salt Lake
City's Gay Pride Parade this year, to show their support for the LGBT
community, and to show us that not all Mormons are what many people perceive
them to be.

The group, Mormons
Building Bridges, said they marched in the parade to send a message of love to
the state’s LGBT community, a message they believe is compatible with their
faith.

Emily Vandyke's 'evolution
had been a long time struggle for her: "I haven’t recognized them as
equals. They have been invisible to me."

But she changed all that as
she marched in the parade, carrying a sign with the words from anLDSchildren’s
song: "I’ll walk with you, I’ll talk with you. That’s how I’ll show my
love for you."

And in the midst of theparade, she embraced a tall woman weeping
at the edge of the crowd who said, "Thank you."

Thank you.

Pride Parade Grand Marshal
Dustin Lance Black tweeted: "In tears. Over 300 straight, active Mormons
showed up to march with me at the Utah Pride parade in support of LGBT
people."

Mormons Building
Bridges followed behind Black in the parade. The men wore suits and ties, little girls wore white dresses, providing a sharp contrast to the
pounding music and dancers behind them, but the crowd clapped and shouted their
approval for those folks in their Sunday best.

ErikaMunson, a mother of five, started the group
only a few weeks ago to show her support for the LGBT community and to
encourage members of her religion to do the same in a public way.

Holly Nelson, a lesbian who
lives in Murray, had tears in their eyes as the Mormons walked
past: "I think it’s amazing. It’s been so hard to be in Utah knowing
the Mormon Church is against the gay community."

Seeing the Mormons
Building Bridges group, which had three times as many participants as
anticipated, made her feel as though she isn’t judged by every single Mormon,
and the church, in Utah.

Still, some marchers in the
parade still feel the sting of being gay and Mormon. Carolyn Ball, a
48-year-old lesbian from West Jordan, was excommunicated in 2000: "I
lost everything I loved because I came out."

This must have been agreatday
for here, to feel that kind of acceptance coming from some members ofLDS.

The marching Mormons included
fathers carrying children on their shoulders and mothers pushing strollers,
some of whom said they wanted to expose their families to this
experience. NevinMunson,
athirteen-year-old boy,
carried a sign as he walked that said "Love thy neighbor as thyself."

"I’m very saddened by
the amount of hate in the world," Nelson said. "I don’t believe in
that — they’re humans."

Another man, walking with the
group, remembered the rash of suicides inMapleton, Utah, as he was growing
up: "There have been too manyLDSdeaths," said
Adam Ford. "No doctrine is more important than God’s children."

ErikaMunson, the Building Bridges founder, reveled
in the success of the event, and hopes this isn't a one-timemarch, and is just the beginning of a grass
roots movement.

"We want to inspire
other Mormons at the local level to do things for their LGBT brothers and sisters,"
she said."What can you do in your area?"

See, while some in the church
fund hate, while some in the church want to removethosewho
areopenlygayfrom
their ranks, many inLDShaveevolved.
Many understand that, no matter what god you believe in, or don’t believe in,
all people deserveequality.